13 Book Reviews submitted by our Members...sorted by voted most helpful

LeCarre writes like a Brit and sometimes it is a little difficult to follow but he is a master of the genre. They have made this into a TV series of flicks with Alec Guiness as a true Smiley personofied.

Le Carre's spy novels are the best of the genre I've read, and George Smiley is my favorite character. As with many/most/all of Le Carre's books I have read, _Tinker_ is not action-packed in a Tom Clancy sense, concentrating instead on the characters, what they are thinking, and what aches and pains are bothering them. Riding along with Smiley as he pushes along to solution is a thrill.

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy is an engaging spy novel on the list of 1001 books you must read before you die. Although a bit confusing at first, I eventually settled into the story involving the upper echelons of the British Intelligence Service during the Cold War. George Smiley, swept into retirement after a botched operation, is called back to investigate when there is the suggestion of a mole—John le Carré is thought to have coined the term—among the leaders of the Circus. The prose, laced with a lot of jargon, builds much suspense along the way. This first installment of the Karla trilogy has me intrigued about the battle between Smiley and Russian spymaster Karla: I might read the whole series.

Book Description
The man he knew as "Control" is dead, and the young Turks who forced him out now run the Circus. But George Smiley isn't quite ready for retirement--especially when a pretty, would-be defector surfaces with a shocking accusation: a Soviet mole has penetrated the highest level of British Intelligence. Relying only on his wits and a small, loyal cadre, Smiley recognizes the hand of Karla--his Moscow Centre nemesis--and sets a trap to catch the traitor.

My Review
After finishing this novel, I would have to say that John LeCarre is the master of spy thriller mysteries. His writing is superb and a pleasure to read. The plot was very intriguing and the characters were plentiful. LeCarre kept me guessing who the mole was right until the very end. I would highly recommend this to anyone who enjoys spy thrillers and great writing.

Despite my willingness to read almost anything, I havent really ever read much in the spy genre. The closest I come is usually something on the mystery front, cuz sometimes theres some spying involved there. However, I saw the movie Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy when it was out over the winter, and decided I would like to read the book because I enjoyed the movie so much.

There were parts of the movie that were kind of confusing to me, this is a convoluted plot and due to the length of the book, some bits got lost in translation. I was really happy to have a lot of that cleared up through reading the book, and the semi familiarity with the plot also made it easier to understand pieces of the book. So that in itself makes this a great movie adaptation, in my world.